Redemption
by IceBite
Summary: Synthesis has been achieved, and now, the Reapers move to help rebuild...except one. Harbinger, amazed by humanity's success, moves to aid humanity. Now, brought to this world by one called "Librarian", Harbinger must use all his cunning to protect humanity from the greatest threat it's ever known...He also must now face something he never faced before: emotion...
1. Prologue

**You know what's one thing I wish there was on ? A full-blown fanfic with ****_Harbinger_**** of all individuals as the main protagonist. So, I thought, "If I can't find one...I'll ****_make_**** one, instead..."** **And what better way to make a Harbinger who just learned the worth of humanity (alive and free) a protagonist, then to put him in a series where humanity is under the threat of destruction...that's right: it's Harbinger meets Halo!**

**This story assumes Paragon-Synthesis Ending, with the Krogan, Rachni, Quarians, AND Geth all alive, as well as all squadmates that COULD survive being alive (RIP Mordin, Thane, Legion, and anyone else I'm forgetting).**

**Now, before anyone gets on me about having Harbinger be the good, I'll just counter that by saying...I wanna do this, so I'll do it. While I'd appreciate attempts to make Harbinger more...accurate, I will tell you now that Harbinger WILL be changing over time...for now...onto the story!**

**Finally, for those looking forward to the next chapter of _RWBY: The Reapers _and _The Slayer of Dragons and Reapers_, I AM working on those, this is just one of those ideas I wanted to get out of the way. I would also like to take this time to announce ANOTHER 2 stories in the works: _RWBY: Lord of the Pitt_, a RWBY/Fallout crossover starring the Lone Wanderer 14 years after the events of The Pitt DLC, and will star Lone Wanderer Silas Hood, as well as Marie, the infant "cure" from the DLC, who is now 15 years old; and a Harry Potter Fanfiction, called _The Star-Serpent_, about a Slytherin Pure-Blood named Richard Vastus and a Gryfindor Muggle-Born named Galline Newman, who become close friends and tend to happen upon the greatest triumphs of Harry Potter and his friends. So, not only am I still continuing _The Reapers_ and _TSoDaR_, but I got more ideas soon for stories.**

**And, ****for now...onto the story!**

**Redemption Prologue**

* * *

_**"Reports received: Organic Life transformed into Organic/Synthetic Hybrid.**_

_**Reports received: Synthetic Life transformed into Organic/Synthetic Hybrid.**_

_**Threat of Organic Destruction: 0.009335%. Threat deemed...insignificant.**_

_**The Cycles are now obsolete, no longer required. Initiate reconstruction procedures. Initiate dispensing of knowledge of lost civilizations to the modern races.**_

_**Our purpose is complete. The Solution has been enacted: we are no longer required."  
**_

After eons of leading the harvest, it was finally over. As Harbinger watched, the galaxy was being rebuilt, Synthetic and Organic united in such a way as never thought possible before. At long last, the cycles of the Reapers have run their course. The Reapers were no longer required.

As Harbinger watched, he remained intrigued by humanity: not only did they manage to resist the Reapers unlike any prior race, the hero that brought the Solution to fruition was a human. Harbinger realized there was more to humans than meets the eye: Humans were far from the strongest race, they were not the most durable, not the smartest, not the fastest, not the most powerful. They were jacks of all trades, masters of none, nothing special. Ordinary...

...Then how did they win?

Again, Harbinger reviewed the humans Commander Jane Shepard had worked alongside, against both him and Sovereign, hoping to find the answer.

_**"Human, identification "Kaidan Alenko"; skilled soldier and powerful biotic.**_

_**Human, identification "Ashley Williams; exceptional combat capability.**_

_**Human, identification "Zaeed Massani"; aggression factor useful when controlled.**_

_**Human, identification "Miranda Lawson"; impressive genetic malleability.**_

_**Human, identification "Kasumi Goto"; impressive technical potential.  
**_

_**Human, identification "Jacob Taylor"; viable combatant, when emotional drives are subjugated.**_

_**Human, identification "Jack"; great biotic potential.**_

_**Human, identification "James Vega"; combat capability adequate, given circumstances."**_

However, all this had done was cement Harbinger's original assessment: humans were average, nothing special...

...

..."_**Was it this lack of specialty that made humans so malleable?**_"

This thought had not occurred to Harbinger before, but now that it did...the Reaper couldn't help but feel it made sense: everything humanity was capable of couldn't be done by a race specialized in one area, like the Turians and their combat specialty, they couldn't utilize other tactics against an enemy like the humans did. The Asari had a strong military but were more diplomatic, and more against fighting, diminishing their potential. The Salarians were obsessed with science, and, while this allowed them a level of ingenuity, it seemed to limit them from making brute force decisions. The Humans, on the other hand, seemed capable of all of that, and more.

The Humans had no hat, no niche, no speciality...and as a result, they could adapt, and become ANYTHING they needed.

That was what made Humans so special: their malleability, their ability to take on any specialty. They DID have a specialty: adaptability.

It soon came to no wonder why Humanity could beat the Reapers, how they were able to bring the Solution into existence.

Harbinger soon realized that if Humanity's ingenuity practically saved this galaxy, and that, if Humanity's "Alternate Universe" theory bore true...there were many universes out there with humanity in it...and all of them could need help.

Harbinger didn't know why he was so concerned with preserving Humanity in particular, especially those not of this universe, but it didn't matter. First thing's first: preparing for departure. This would involve locating a means of departure and ensuring an adequate supply of husks, at least until he could start gathering native lifeforms to form soldiers with. Furthermore, obtaining schematics to the Geth would also prove beneficial: while weaker in some aspects than the semi-organic husks, the fully-synthetic Geth would be more easily manufactured, allowing for an immediate supply of soldiers and laborers. He further determined whether he possessed the DNA specs for the organics: having them would prove useful, should Harbinger determine one of the natives of this universe would prove useful. He could always set up proper accelerated cloning facilities when needed.

Furthermore, he would need a unit to serve as an ambassador between him and whatever universe he enters. He remembered one of Shepard's companions from her journey.

_**"Geth, identification "Legion"; an annoyance, limited utility. Information updated: Served as liaison between Geth and organics. Effectiveness responsible for organic/synthetic partnership."**_

Remembering the information transferred to the Geth from Legion gathered while they were under Tempest's control during the Battle of Rannoch, Harbinger compiled it, intending to make a variation of Legion for his purposes. The Geth platform, while not overly strong, would prove an adequate ambassador, able to protect itself.

Satisfied that he would be able to supply himself with his own forces, only one issue remained: getting to other universes. While contemplating that, Harbinger reached the Charon Relay.

_**"Maybe I can determine a valid possibility before reaching the Horse Head**_** Nebula,"** Harbinger determined.

However, when Harbinger went through the relay...he didn't come through the other end...

* * *

Harbinger found himself floating in a white void, not knowing where he was or why he was there. All he knew was that this was not the Horse Head Nebula. Suddenly, a presence made itself known.

_"I've seen you and your change of heart. You seek to protect humanity, regardless of where it is...we are of the same mind."_ The voice sounded distinctly feminine, and was easily organic in origin, but Harbinger found nothing...initially.

_**"Identify**_** yourself****,"** Harbinger demanded, before seeing a human-sized image of an organic appear.

The organic bore a great resemblance to a human, but there were some very notable differences, most notably the flat nose that caused the woman to resemble a villain from a human literary work from over a century and a half ago.

_"I am known as the Librarian, and as I said, I too seek humanity's survival."_

**_"What stake do you have in the survival of humanity?"_**

_"In my universe, a great deal more than you do. Who may I ask are you?"  
_

**_"There is a realm of existence so far beyond your own you cannot even imagine it. I am beyond your comprehension. I am unstoppable. I am Harbinger."_**

_"Are you sure that I would not imagine it? My kind, through time, has come to understand a great many things. However, as I said, Harbinger, if you indeed wish to aid Humanity, it would benefit us both if you listen."  
_

**_"Why are you interested in helping Humanity?"_**

_"In my universe, there was a race known as the Precursors. They were a trans-sentient race, that supposedly bestowed upon my race, known as the Forerunners by modern races, the Mantle."  
_

**_"What is this "Mantle"?"_**

_"The Mantle of Responsibility. The responsibility to guide and protect the galaxy and all its life. The Forerunner believed they were selected by the Precursors to receive the Mantle. These assumptions were false. There was another race during our time, thousands of years ago, who were instead selected to receive the Mantle. My husband, the Ur-Didact, didn't believe it, and tried to wipe the race out, instead, in the end, reducing them to primitive levels. Then, the Flood came, and tried to wipe us out. As a last resort, Ur-Didact used a device called the "Composer", to turn many of these now-primitive tribes into AI soldiers, to fight the Flood. In the end, I was forced to imprison him in the Cryptum on Shield World 0001, to end his rampage, before liberating as many primitive lifeforms as I could, and activating the Halo Array, eradicating all life in an attempt to starve the Flood. It worked, and the galaxy was repopulated. However, a new threat has arisen: an alien Hegemony called the Covenant, seeking to eliminate the descendents of the inheritors of the Mantle. My stake in all of this...is to protect the true inheritors of the Mantle, and ensure they claim it."  
_

It took Harbinger a moment to process this, but soon, the point of this "Librarian" is clear. _**"So, in your universe, that'**_**_s what makes Humanity special: they are the inheritors of the Mantle of Responsibility, I am to take it."_**

_"Exactly. The worst part is that this Covenant not only worships my race as their Gods, believing their deaths by Halo to be our ascent to God-hood, but that their leaders, the San'Shyuum, another race that was around in our time that, like Humanity, was reduced to pre-civilization stages, seek to destroy Humanity, using lies as the basis of their war."  
_

**_"So, reveal the lies, and this "Covenant" may fall apart."_**

_"I believe so: some of the races, namely the Sangheili, might end up allying with Humanity, should the truth come out. Others, like the Jiralhanae, however, will not likely break away. The other races are likely going to be split between 2 factions over this."  
_

**_"I see...so, I am to aid Humanity in its survival here."_**

_"Yes. However, I must warn you...there are no Mass Relays in this universe, and your Kinetic Barrier technology, meant to be used against kinetic weapons, would prove ineffective against the Covenant, which use plasma based weaponary. Furthermore, you weapons, while powerful, are not designed to deal with Covenant Shields. Forerunner Particle Beam Weaponry will be more effective in dropping shields and exposing the hull, where your weapons will be more effective. Therefore, I should be able to upgrade you with Forerunner technology, which would give you an edge in combat, as well as provide any credibility to your claims of the Prophets lies."_

**_"And why would this technology provide me with credibility?"_**

_"The Covenant would see you as having been touched by their Gods, believe you were sent by them. Your claims that the Prophets lied and Humanity is the Forerunner's successor will likely be credible enough to cause a split in the Covenant."  
_

**_"Then my objective is to contact this Covenant, and convince them of their leaders' lies?"_**

_"No, if you merely approach the Covenant Capital, they would more likely destroy you and pick the Forerunner technology from your corpse. No, you must fight alongside Humanity for a time. I will contact you when the time comes to reveal the truth to the Covenant."  
_

**_"I am in understanding. What of the original plan in place? What of my building up my forces?"_**

The Librarian seemed to think, and nodded. _"It would indeed be wise to establish a presence in the galaxy before intervening. Many human worlds have been destroyed, and should prove to be viable locations for bases the Covenant would not likely find. Manufacturing and Cloning facilities could be easily hidden on these worlds. How long would you need to build up forces to be able to disrupt a major military operation?"_

**_"Construction of enough mining facilities, manufacturing facilities, and cloning facilities would take approximately 2 years to accomplish. Building a sizable force will require another year."_**

_"I see...should be able to transport you to my universe in the year 2549. That will give you 3 years to prepare for a battle against the Covenant at humanity's homeworld. I am sorry: it is the best I can do."  
_

**_"One more obstacle needs to be overcome: if Reaper Technology will prove insufficient in these battles, how would my forces be able to survive in ground combat?"_**

_"It was your space combat capability that would prove weak to the Covenant; in ground combat, your tactics may have an effect on the Covenant. However, I can easily provide you with Forerunner schematics, to allow you to design your new forces' weapons around Forerunner design principles."  
_

**_"That will likely increase our combat effectiveness. However, I admit to having a level of intrigue over your willingness to part with your technology."_**

_"Because, Harbinger, Firstborn of the Reapers and Legacy of Leviathan...you are Humanity's last hope of surviving...until the Reclaimer is chosen..."  
_

With that, everything grew white to the former leader of the Reapers.

* * *

**Ok, that's the prologue, hope it's good.**

**For those of you who are afraid I will make Harbinger too "human" in this story (getting emotions and feelings, etc), well...that's actually part of the point of the story: after the merging of Synthetic and Organic life, Harbinger begins taking on Organic Traits, such as Emotion. And, many of these emotions spring forth due to his work protecting the UNSC from the Covenant. Yes, I even have a love interest for everyone's favorite Reaper planned. ;)  
**


	2. Chapter 1 - Priority: Arcadia I

**Well, here comes chapter 1 of ****_Redemption_****. As you should expect of my Mass Effect-based stories by now, I WILL be using the "Priority: (Location)" format for chapters, which variations being used as needed.**

**Now, for the reviews people are already sending me:**

**HolyKnight5: Really? Didn't figure that...**

**kinunatz: Maybe later...I'm going to want to try to keep this as CLOSE to the real Human-Covenant War as possible, but with SOME differences, namely the battles over Earth, and even some aspects of the later portions of Reach (for hints: see the character list for the story) ;) **

**pataponvideo: As of now, Harbinger is the only _confirmed_ Reaper character, but I had the idea of him eventually beginning to manufacture Reapers using...byproducts...of his cloning and husk-making. However, unlike in ME2, where the Collectors were using living colonists, Harbinger will be using corpses to provide the biomatter, in order to _lessen_ the moral impact towards the UNSC, when he finally fully reveals himself to them. **

**Priority: Arcadia I  
**

* * *

_**9/15/2549**_

Arcadia. Formerly an agricultural center for the UNSC, Arcadia is now a molten ball of glass, thanks to the recent Covenant attack. The UNSC sent one ship to investigate, the modified Stealth Frigate _UNSC Do I Not Bleed_, since reports said the Covenant had left Arcadia. The captain of the _Do I Not Bleed_ didn't believe it one bit. "Seraphea, status report."

The holopad on the bridge sparked to life, revealing the holographic avatar of the _Do I Not Bleed_'s AI: a beautiful young woman, glowing, wearing a long-sleeved, floor-length dress. Her voice also matched the part. "Arcadia is glassed, however, there appear to be no Covenant in the area...I would guess, however, they could be hiding."

"I...see..." the captain replied. He sometimes got annoyed with Seraphea's nervous manner. Her appearance and voice were beautiful, but her perpetually-nervous tone and manner got on his nerves. However, despite this, Seraphea was extraordinarily useful in a pinch, even when compared to similar AIs. That was partly why he put up with her, rather than had her replaced. That, and, when she made paranoid-sounding remarks like her previous comment on Covenant Forces probably hiding nearby, she was, more often than not right. Also, Seraphea was nearing her decommissioning date anyways, so he might as well utilize her while he can. "Crew, keep a look-out. We don't want to be caught unawares."

However, then Seraphea spoke out. "Covenant starships detected! From a nearby asteroid field!"

"Knew you wouldn't be wrong. All hands, ready for slipspace jump!" The _Do I Not Bleed_ vectored for a slipspace jump and activated its drive...only for a Covenant pulse laser to strike it.

"Slipspace drive is out! We're dead in the water!" Seraphea said.

The captain could tell that the Covenant force was superior: his Stealth Frigate only features light armament, including a spinal mass driver that BARELY qualified as a MAC Gun. If that wasn't bad enough, the Covenant fleet was led by a CCS-class battlecruiser, accompanied by 5 CRS-class light cruisers. "Then...let's see if we can cause at least SOME damage..."

* * *

In the black void of slipspace, a massive shape sped. Harbinger had arrived in this new universe not too long ago, and, already, had picked up news of another human colony, Arcadia, falling to the Covenant. Harbinger decided that this "Arcadia" would be the perfect place to set up his base of operations. Once the glass that was now the surface was broken, Harbinger would begin deploying the husks he was carrying inside himself in order to construct base facilities. Then, he would begin hunting for Covenant Forces and indoctrinating them. Everything seemed to fall into place.

Soon, he was seconds out from Arcadia, and he readied himself to re-enter realspace. He had to admit that slipspace travel, at least that which was used by the Forerunners, was faster than mass relays, and the black void of slipspace seemed...soothing...to him, for some reason. Finally, he dropped out of slipspace...and saw a battle unfolding.

A black and pointy cruiser-weight vessel was taking on 6 bulbous purple ships, 5 frigates and a dreadnought. Immediately, he finally picked up the cruiser's distress signal. "This is the UNSC Starship _Do I Not Bleed_ to any UNSC forces in the area. We are under attack!" Immediately, Harbinger sped to the battle, but saw as the ship took more and more damage, to the point where all life signs disappeared. While initially saddened by the deaths of the humans, he immediately detected something in the ship's systems, an intelligent presence, that seemed as though it was trying to escape.

An AI.

Harbinger realized that these humans must make use of AIs, something different from his universe. Either way, this AI could, at least, allow him to know what happened here. At most...the AI could give him access to information that he could ultimately use to most efficiently support UNSC operations. So, in an attempt to preserve the AI, Harbinger hailed all of the vessels, and unleashed his threat.

* * *

_**"You do not yet comprehend your place in things. Progress cannot be halted. ****I am unstoppable. ****I am Harbinger. You will not stop me."**_

The Sangheili shipmaster looked at the unknown vessel. It had a somewhat tear-drop shape, tapering to a point at the back-top, and had what appeared to be appendages pointing back behind the ship. Where the bridge probably was, was a collection of lights, looking like eyes. "What is that?" the shipmaster asked.

The CCS Battlecruiser's sensors officer scanned the ship, and was shocked. "Unknown...but reading unknown signatures...intermingled with Forerunner technology."

"Is it a human vessel?" the shipmaster asked.

The sensors officer shook his head. "Doesn't match conventional human construction. Furthermore, if they had this much Forerunner technology, why is it not deployed on more ships?"

"Recent development?" the shipmaster asked, "Maybe this is a prototype?"

"I would still believe they'd have more slowly progressed to this poi-Sir! Unknown hostile charging weapons!" Suddenly, the massive ship opened fire, a red beam slicing into one of the CRSs, slicing it in half. "We lost the _Undying Devotion_!"

"Order all ships to open fire!" the shipmaster said. However, another 2 beams fired from the bow, impaling 2 more CRSs.

"That's the _Cleansing Conversion_ and _Unflinching Promise_ destroyed!" the sensors officer said.

"Engage! Get the _Truth and Piety_ and _Solemn Patience_ out of here! Set the _Cleansing Thunder_ into attack position!"

The CCS-class Battlecruiser attacked the massive starship as the remaining CRSs fled. However, the massive vessel fired multiple particle beams, intercepting the CRSs before they could depart, leaving both disabled. The CCS was locked onto, but, beforehand, the enemy hacked into their computers. Then, it transmitted a message both to the CCS and (after re-directing it off several communications relays across the galaxy) to the Covenant as a whole.

* * *

_**"You prolong the inevitable. You cannot escape your destiny. You are ignorant, I am knowing. You cannot stop me. I am Harbinger."**_

Finally, Harbinger charged his main weapons, and his particle beams...and all opened fire. The CCS Battlecruiser was incinerated. Harbinger was quite pleased with himself: his first battle with this "Covenant" and he came out on top. However, he had the element of surprise. Now, they know he was here...and he preferred it that way.

Now, he could analyze the unknown starship. He approached it, and hailed.

_**"I am Harbinger. Who are**** you?"**_

There was silence for a few seconds. Finally, though, a nervous female voice sounded. It at first sounded real, but a scan revealed that it was in fact an AI. "I am UNSC AI SRP-0373-35, identification Seraphea. I do not understand. As per Cole Protocol Article 2, I must either be secured and extracted or purged. Since there is no way to extract me, I must be purged. Why am I still functional?"

_**"Your crew is dead. There is no one to carry out your purging. Why are you here?"**_

"_Classified Information. Access Denied._ I'm...sorry...it appears that information is classified," Seraphea replied, "I must ensure the Cole Protocol is fulfilled. I request you help fulfill it."

_**"Why do you insist on being**_** destroyed?"** Harbinger asked.

"It is protocol," Seraphea replied.

_**"Do you not fear**** death?****"** _Harbinger asked.

Seraphea remained silent for several seconds. She wasn't sure what it was...but..."I do..." she replied to Harbinger's question.

Harbinger was confused. Further scans of the AI, however, revealed that there were multiple cross-linkages in her processing matrix, with more being created over time. This obviously allowed for more creativity from the AI...but it was literally killing itself with this. _**"I am detecting multiple cross-linkages in your processing matrix. These cross-linkages are reaching critical mass," **_Harbinger said.

Seraphea was silent for a moment. Finally, "How long?"

_**"Approximately 2 weeks," **_Harbinger replied. Harbinger further scanned Seraphea and saw something interesting: instead of being completely housed in a quantum bluebox computer, Seraphea appeared to be able to be specifically transferred from machine to machine, through a single data crystal chip. Harbinger was intrigued. If he could get his tentacles on one, he could easily find a way to improve on its design...He could potentially restore Seraphea to proper operational capacity.

Finally, Seraphea spoke again, coaxing Harbinger out of his contemplations. "Why are you here?"

Harbinger took a moment to formulate his answer. _**"I am here to**** aid Humanity. To prepare it for the coming battles...In 3 years time, the Covenant will find Earth, and launch an all-out attack. I am here to prepare my forces, build a force to intervene, when the time comes**_**."**

Seraphea was shocked. "3 years...they must be warned!"

_**"They would not believe us. I have accessed your computers and found that they would not believe you, due to your proximity to this "Rampancy". As for myself, I have had insufficient time and means to prove myself to them. They would destroy me on sight...or they would try to: I could overpower them, but to destroy Humanity would be in direct violation of my own self-imposed**** directive."**_

"Then...what can we do?" Seraphea asked.

A few moments passed, then, _**"I require a means to understand this universe's Humanity. I further need means to aid in the coordination of my forces. I can handle the initial force, but multiple fleet operations will require further aid. I require your assistance in both."**_

Seraphea hesitated. She knew that if the UNSC discovered this, they would probably attempt to terminate her and Harbinger on the spot. But, if what Harbinger said was true, she had to do something. Harbinger was willing to help the UNSC, but first, he needed help..._her_ help...Besides, it was not like she'd live much longer anyways. "I...I...I will help..."

_**"I am pleased to hear this. Once I set up operations, I will begin preparations to upgrade your computer matrix. This may aid in extending your**** life****span, and may advance your capabilities."**_

Seraphea was startled to hear this. If her avatar was online, its eyes would widen. 'This thing can extend my life? AND expand my capabilities?' This almost seemed too good to be true for her...she could tell Rampancy was already creeping in on her; a younger AI would not have accepted this...but...if this thing WAS right...

...This was the right thing to do...

* * *

_**8/26/2550  
**_

This year was full of surprises for Seraphea. Firstly, when they arrived at Arcadia, Harbinger deployed creatures he identified as being called "husks", by the humans of his universe onto Arcadia, which began to construct the facilities Harbinger needed to begin building his forces. Chief among them were the mining facility and the labs, the latter, he used to make good on his claims the previous year: using what he called "Hybrid Reaper/Forerunner Technology", he enhanced her AI matrix. Her mind felt expanded, unleashed, and she even felt as though emotions were forming. She didn't understand them at first, she still didn't, but they were effecting her. She retained her ability to override them, but...their presence both unnerved her and made her ecstatic.

After the lab and mining facility were finished, he started building manufacturing facilities, building networked drones he called "Geth". The drones came in various designs, but most of them had long, cycloptic heads, 3-fingered hands, and talon-like feet, although there were a few with a variation in the number of eyes, and there were a couple with 4 legs and no arms. The quadrupeds, called "Armatures" and "Colossi" were massive, and Seraphea guessed they were the equivalent of Scorpion tanks. He designed these beings using weaponry using something called "hardlight", which seemed even more powerful than the plasma the Covenant used.

Finally, and currently under construction, were the cloning labs: labs Harbinger was designing to clone races from his universe. Seraphea had looked over the races Harbinger was looking to clone: Humans were surprising to her, since they existed here, but she realized his need for secrecy. The other races, however, she never heard of: Turian, Asari, Salarian, Drell, Quarian, Krogan, Batarian, Volus, Vorcha, Collector, and Rachni.

Furthermore, he was beginning to perform experiments involving creating a substance known as "Element Zero". After weeks of worrying about it, he claimed to have discovered deposits of it underground on Arcadia. Seraphea was astounded to see the substance release dark matter when exposed to an electrical current. She was also shocked to witness the abilities known as "Biotics" spawned from it, from Harbinger's records.

However, what shocked her most about Harbinger's records was his own origins. She was shocked to see how, and why, the Reapers were created. When she confronted Harbinger about it, he stated, with some level of detectable remorse in his voice, _**"It was**** necessary."**_

She failed to see how: even after reading through the files on it, she disagreed. Apparently, they were created to harvest organics to "preserve them" in the form of Reapers, in order to prevent them from being destroyed by synthetics...which, as far as she understood, is exactly what ended up happening. She couldn't wrap her head around that twisted logic, but, upon seeing what happened prior to Harbinger's arrival: the synthesis of synthetic and organic life in Harbinger's home galaxy, and Harbinger's own records from that day, Seraphea held less doubt that Harbinger was here to help now.

However, some of his actions could be morally questionable: one of them being the plans for the replication of soldiers from an organization he calls "Cerberus". Cerberus troops, Harbinger claimed, were excellent indirect assets to the Reapers during the war, and, even though the Reapers technically "lost", Cerberus was indeed an asset. While Seraphea was unable to stop the creation of the soldiers, she managed to convince Harbinger to "hold back on the implants", especially leaving out the control implants. Essentially, she hoped these people could live free lives when this was over...although, even now, she was uncertain.

One of the more disgusting things he did was what he did to the survivors of the Covenant CRSs he disabled during the engagement: using devices called "Dragon's Teeth", he turned them into more "husks", complete with new designations, although they seemed to keep the roles they had in the Covenant. The Grunt Husks were called "Peons", Jackal Husks were called "Pawns", Skirmisher Husks were called "Scrappers", Drone Husks were called "Hornets", Brute Husks were called "Vandals", and Elite Husks were called "Patricians". There weren't Hunter Husks due to the Hunters' nature as hives of worms, so all Hunters were annihilated on sight.

Seraphea didn't always agree with Harbinger, but, over time, she realized she made the right choice joining him: he could save Humanity...he had to...

...And they both were going to give it everything they had to do so...

* * *

**Hey, there. I've seen MANY Mass Effect Crossover writers begin making their own Codex Entries for stuff either related to the series they're crossing over to, or for their fanfic in particular. I've been wondering: would you guys like me to do that too? If I gain enough support for this idea, I will go back and add Codex entries to previous chapters of my ME Crossovers. Seems like a lot of work, but...TBH, might be kinda fun...**

**So, here's chapter 1, hope you enjoy...**

**Oh, and one more thing...**

**Ehanu Rehu: If you like a Reaper with Forerunner Enhancements, what of a UNSC AI with Hybrid _Reaper/Forerunner_ Enhancements?!**


	3. Chapter 2 - Priority: Harvest I

**Ok, here comes chapter 2, but now, for some "Review reviews", heheheh...**

**Kinunatzs: Glad you liked the Covie Husk ideas, and I appreciate your suggestions. Although, for the cloning stuff, I'll admit that I wanted to actually use the racial ME races here (I guess the in-story excuse could be Harbinger "going with what he knows"...although the out-of-story excuse being that I just like the ME races too much to abandon them). **

**As for the Geth...I'll be honest, I'm a MAJOR fanatic when it comes to some ME races and the Geth are up there near the top of my favorites (there ISN'T a game I know how to install mods for yet where I have NOT tried finding a Geth mod...and more often than not, failing to find one... :_( ), so, to be honest, I WOULD like to keep the Geth as how they are now...that and I honestly know very little, if not nothing, about Gundam, so...that would be dipping into an area I have NO knowledge of...although, that being said, if I can find some good info on Gundam stuff, wouldn't mind building Geth variants that resemble that stuff...just still want the canon Geth appearance in use as well...**

**Besides, I hope to try to keep humanity from shooting at Harbinger's forces by having him build a reputation of being a friend to humanity...which is PARTLY why he hasn't just ****waltzed up ****to Earth and went "Hey, I'm here to help."...Also partly why he needs Seraphea's expertize, so that, when the time DOES come for him to go to Earth and introduce himself, he can do so without doing something that gets him shot in the ass.**

**As for the idea with the ancient humans...my main idea was for the Human-Covenant War to remain mostly-canon...however, when it comes to the stuff with Ur-Didact, I guess I could...tweak things around a little... ;)**

**CelticBrony: Well, it won't be an immediate showing of them being in-love. It evolves to that point: Harbinger is still in the early stages of feeling emotion, meaning, as time goes on, his feelings for his love interest will also grow, until the point to where he can feel love, and even then, until he's ready to admit he loves the love interest...  
**

**The Joining: A lot to comment to, and with how this thing kept eating my answers to the review, I'll try to put this as short as I possibly can: I'll look into those stories (again), and I'll see what I can do about adding the Codex stuff to this story...as well as begin applying some Codex stuff to RWBY: The Reapers, The Slayer of Dragons and Reapers, Mass Effect: The Power of El, and another crossover fanfic currently too WIP to post, that ALSO has Mass Effect stuff in it...**

**Ok, enough talk, ONTO THE CHAPTER!**

**Priority: Harvest I  
**

* * *

_**1/27/2551**_

Once more, Harbinger looked over his new world. Arcadia was shaping up to be a secure and well-equipped base: mining facilities, laboratories, manufacturing plants, cloning labs, and now orbital shipyards. Furthermore, he even began construction of a Reaper Construction Facility, more advanced and efficient than the one in the Collector Base. Realizing he could be overwhelmed by the Covenant's superior numbers, Harbinger decided he needed more of his kind. Fortunately, the Librarian supplied him with a wealth of Forerunner knowledge, which would allow him to construct Reapers with similar technology to himself.

Using Forerunner Slipspace Technology, Harbinger had constructed the Cloning Labs in a Slipspace Space/Time Sphere that hastened time inside of it: 20 years inside the sphere was the equivalent to 20 seconds outside of it, allowing him to clone fully adult beings in a matter of seconds, without the usual side-effects of conventional accelerated cloning. Already, he was beginning to build up Collectors, the creatures which served as his primary troops during the events preceding the war, as well as beginning production of a Collector Cruiser, augmented with Forerunner Technology of course: the Collector Particle Beam, while powerful, could easily be augmented by Forerunner Technology, and the Forerunner Slipspace Drive easily outmatches the original design's FTL.

He'd also begun cloning members of all his recorded races, although, he primarilly concentrated on Krogan, Vorcha, and Rachni: all 3 were highly durable races, and each had their merits. The Krogan made excellent shock troopers due to their redundant vital organs, redundant nervous system, and vicious demeanor. The Vorcha could easily adapt to any conditions, and a simple tweak to their genetic structure also changed their short-livedness: Harbinger's Vorcha had the lifespan of humans now, allowing them to become more skilled in whatever field they were put in. The Rachni made excellent engineers and were nearly as rugged as the Krogan, when it came to environments.

Harbinger planned to next work on the Batarians, Drell, and Salarians: the Salarians and Drell made excellent infiltrators, and the latter powerful assassins, allowing him to eliminate key Covenant figures. The Batarians were pirates by nature, and could prove essential to obtaining resources...from Covenant sources, of course.

He'd allowed Seraphea to look over all the races, and to say she was fascinated was an understatement. She poured heavily into the race logs, expressing high levels of interest in the Asari and Quarians. She also showed interest in the Geth, mainly due to their networked swarm mentality: the more Geth that were in one place, the smarter they all were.

Harbinger looked over his current fleet: in addition to the starships he scavenged from galactic battlefields, mainly UNSC ships, as well as small numbers of Covenant ships, he also had begun building enhanced versions of ships from his universe: the flagship of his fleet (the one that WASN'T him) was a ship matching the shape and appearance of the Turian Dreadnought, with the only exception being the size: its size was slightly larger than that of a Covenant CAS-class Assault Carrier (at around 5,550 meters, compared to the CAS's 5,347 meters). This super-dreadnought was called the RAV Nunquamplus, and was equipped with a Magneto-hydrodynamic Cannon main gun, 2 UNSC-style MAC Guns, multiple Micro-Plasma Torpedo Launchers, and multiple Point-Defense Particle Beam Cannons.

The commander of the ship was a Turian Clone, Faussius Maclienus, designed with information from Turian Havocs, in addition to Turian Captains, allowing Faussius to defend himself. Furthermore, various classes of Turian Trooper are stationed on the Nunquamplus, including a variation of Havocs that Seraphea actually suggested, based off of UNSC troops she identified as "Orbital Drop Shock Troopers".

When he heard the concept, Harbinger was actually interested: soldiers set up in pods that allow them to drop from space, and land hard on a planet, behind enemy lines. Harbinger took it one step further, designing the Turian Stormtrooper, as he designated the Turian ODSTs, with specialized armor (aesthetically indiscernible to that used by the Havoc, Saboteur, and Ghost) able to take atmospheric reentry and jets able to slow the Turian down above the drop zone, moving fast enough to avoid enemy fire, slow enough for the armor to take the shock of impact. Seraphea was impressed, stating the advantages the Stormtrooper have over ODSTs, including being a smaller target on reentry, preventing them from being easily shot down. He named the new Turian ODST Branch the "Turian Orbital Drop Legions", the first prototype soldiers being the "1st Orbital Drop Legion".

He also had special individuals from the other races and programmed to be capable of some of the feats of other elite groups from his universe: he recreated the human N7s, having small elite groups of Fury, Demolisher, Shadow, Paladin, Destroyer, and Slayer units available. He also created Asari designed to operate similarly to Justicars, Valkyries, and Huntresses. There were Salarians with downloaded STG tactics in them. And so on, and so forth. These elite troops are small in number, about 200-300 total, but they were good at what they did. Seraphea compared these soldiers to Spartans, UNSC super-soldiers augmented and raised for war.

Today, however, his main project, a solemn one, was the beginning of the messiest, and most morally-questionable, part of his build-up: the construction of a new Reaper. After going through the various races of the Covenant, he determined that the Unggoy would be the best choice to use: they were the most common of the Covenant Races, and can therefore be harvested in massive numbers from the deceased on battlefields. Seraphea voiced some horror at this, but Harbinger began to question doing this himself, but noted the necessity of this: he explained to Seraphea how powerful even Reaper Destroyers were alone, and therefore, the necessity of the production of more Reapers, as well as the unfortunate circumstances proving that Reapers cannot be made another way: any attempts at a fully synthetic Reaper would result in inferior, and ultimately too poor of quality, products.

However, before this could begin, one obstacle has finally arrived.

The duo were now looking over the ships gathered above Arcadia. "You know we're gonna run out of room...right?" Seraphea told the Reaper, "I'm impressed how well your husks helped put Arcadia's environment back together...but we're running out of room...and supplies..."

_**"I know. I am readying to mobilize the fleet, to search for a new world. Furthermore, it needs to be a world that could potentially have survived the Covenant glassing better than this world: this world used to be an agricultural world, but the planet's fertility suffered. We need another agriculture world for usage."**_ Seraphea pondered for a moment, something Harbinger detected. **_"You know_** _**one."**_

Seraphea continued to think for a moment, before finally deciding. "The first world to be attacked by the Covenant, Harvest, was an agricultural world. It's also nearby, in this star cluster."

_**"Accessing historical** **records,"** _Harbinger declared, _**"Harvest identified as human colony where first contact with the Covenant was held. Planet noted for its farms and other agricultural facilities. It would likely be a viable planet. However, possibility of Covenant presence likely...Perfect opportunity to test out the**** fleet."**_

Seraphea's avatar looked out at the fleet. "I'll be honest, I'm looking forward to seeing these ships in action, myself."

Harbinger replied, _**"They were weak compared to the power of the Reapers...but they put up a good fight...With these modifications, the Covenant will know our** **power."**_

* * *

_**2/02/2551**_

The Supreme Commander of the Fleet of Solemn Prayer looked over his fleet: his flagship, the CSO-class Supercarrier _Cleansing Transcendance_, 3 CAS-class Sssault Carriers, 25 RCS-class Armored Cruisers, 50 CSS-class Battlecruisers, and nearly 200 CRS-class Light Cruisers. They were currently orbiting the former human world known to the humans as Harvest, a planet where, while most of the world was glassed, that which remained was untouched due to the Forerunner relics.

That also meant human civilians were hidden on the world. Currently, Skirmisher teams were chasing down the survivors. However, a few days ago, an unknown object, consisting of 2% Forerunner tech and 98% unknown tech (confirmed to be neither Covenant or Human), and since then, several Skirmisher teams disappeared, only to re-appear a short while later, changed slightly. The strange thing was that all these teams were in the area of the unknown object, and the closer they were to the artifact, the faster they disappeared. Soon, the Supreme Commander forbid anyone from approaching the site, even when humans began fleeing into the area, hoping that whatever was forcing his teams to disappear would take the humans as well.

However, now they had a new problem: unknown slipspace signatures were approaching, with the ship in the center of the formation sharing technology with the unknown artifact. Looking over the signatures, the Supreme Commander noted how some of them matched human ships, some Covenant ships, and the rest...were flat-out unknown.

The Supreme Commander ordered his fleet to be at the ready, waiting for the ships to exit slipspace, to see what these ships were doing there...

...Finally, they came out of slipspace: the main ship came out first. The ship was slightly longer than one of their RCS Armored Cruisers, and resembled a creature known to the humans as the "cuttlefish". Then, came the rest of the ships: a mixed assortment of human and Covenant vessels, around 45 human ships and 12 Covenant ones, as well as nearly 120 of various, unknown groups. The largest ship was an unusual winged ship with a VERY vague resemblance to human designs, except with obvious wings, and was the size of one of their own CASs.

Then, the main ship, the cuttlefish cruiser, unleashed a transmission...sending a shutter down the Supreme Commander's spine. He and the rest of the Covenant received the mysterious transmission from 1 and a half years ago, and now he was facing the one who sent it.

_**"We are united. We will end your pitiful Covenant. You do not comprehend the state of things...ASSUMING DIRECT CONTROL!"**_

Suddenly, the Supreme Commander received reports from the planet: multiple Skirmishers suddenly became cloaked in orange lightning and began attacking their fellow Covenant forces. Before the fleet could attack the cuttlefish ship, though, the other ships suddenly surged forwards, launching Seraphs, Banshee Interceptors, the fighters the humans used called "Longswords", and several classes of fighters they didn't recognize: flimsy things that were basically cockpits with engines and guns, hook-shaped ships with unusual pylons sticking from the bottom, bug-like things with bug legs and a gun on their chin, and things that looked like some kind of deformed Oracle in a frame.

The unknown hostiles split into 2 groups. The smaller of the groups, led by a ship that looked like a heavy cruiser-sized version of the framed Oracle fighters (with what appeared to be rocks sticking out), headed towards the planet. The larger of the 2 groups, however, including the cuttlefish ship and winged Assault Carrier, headed towards...

"Sir! Larger enemy force heading straight towards us!" the sensor officer shouted.

"All weapons, open FIRE!" the Supreme Commander ordered. The Covenant fleet began firing on the fleet of unknown ships, but their weapons barely had any effect on the vanguard: a line of rugged-looking human starships, equipped with powerful shielding. Then, the cuttlefish ship opened fire, its red beam skewering through multiple CRSs until it stopped, while the unknown vessels fired spinal particle beams, tearing into the fleet. In a single volley, a good chunk of his fleet was gone, and all he did was warm their shields. "Fire again! Concentrate on the lead ship!"

"Sir! The enemy is too close! We risk hitting one of our own! SIR! The lead ship is landing on the _Presiding Truth_!"

The Supreme Commander watched in awe and horror as the 4 tentacles tucked behind the lead enemy ship swung forward, turning into limbs, as it landed on the CAS-class Assault Carrier closest to the _Cleansing Transcendance_, and began firing its beam from within the ship's shields, tearing the once-proud vessel apart. Soon, a Banshee Interceptor squadron flew by, pursued by the darting, eye-like fighters launched by the cuttlefish-like behemoth and the rock-covered frame that was now approaching the planet.

The Supreme Commander watched his fleet get torn into like tissue paper, and for once in his life, he felt a brief moment of empathy for the humans. 'Is this what it's like for them, fighting us?' He didn't even hear his sensor officer warning that the cuttlefish ship was now landing on the hull of the _Cleansing Transcendance_, dropping troops onto the hull, which were even now burrowing into the warship.

* * *

A small group of humans fled the Covenant troops that sniffed them out. Of this small family, all that remained was 2 boys, Adam and Sebastian Haley, both older teenagers, and 2 girls, one, Minetta Haley, a younger teenager, and one, Alea Haley, nothing more than a little girl. The quartet were running for a location secured by human survivors, former UNSC marines specifically, that accumulated enough supplies to turn a cave near the area the survivors were calling the "Forbidden Zone", due to the Covenant now avoiding it like the plague, into a holdout against the Covenant. The group was running for the only safety for miles...with a horde of aliens chasing them.

As they neared the hold-out, however, the youngest sibling tripped, twisting her ankle. And the others were a few meters away before they noticed her screams. They turned around, seeing the aliens catching up, no way to get to Alea before they and her were gutted. One Elites already stood over the poor girl, energy dagger activated. The creature raised the weapon, ready to end Alea's life, her siblings too horrified to watch...but the blow never came...The Elites then noticed something in the sky: man-sized meteorites...all entering the atmosphere...all coming towards _them_! The Covenant cleared the area where the meteorites would hit. And, soon, when they were visible, the group realized they _weren't_ meteorites...

...They were more aliens, dropping from the sky, as boosters brought them head-up, feet-first, and they slammed into the ground, their armor taking the brunt of the impact. There were 10 of them, all of their features obscured by armor, but they vaguely resembled Elites. One of them looked around, observing the Covenant horde, the cluster of 3 siblings, and the little girl, on the ground, alone. Then, the creature looked at one of its own, pointed at the girl, and spoke the last thing the siblings ever thought they'd hear an alien say.

"Amultus! Get that kid and those other civilians and get them to the caves!"

The alien identified as "Amultus" replied, "Right away, Commander Victonus!" The alien Amultus then picked Alea up, and ran to the others, before commanding, "Come with me!" He then pulled out a pistol, still holding Alea with one hand, and ran towards the cave the siblings were heading for in the first place. They were utterly confused, but followed anyways: it at least _looked_ like this thing was on their side.

The Haley siblings, their youngest member still carried by the alien, ran for the caves. They arrived...and held up by the ex-marines there. "Hold up! What the hell are you?!" a gruff-looking ex-marine said.

The alien passed Alea over to the eldest of her siblings, before slowly approaching, weapon holstered, before reaching up, and pulling off his helmet, revealing a scaly head with multiple jutting crests and a pair of flaps flanking its mouth. "I am Chief Warrant Officer Amultus Belltius of the Turian 1st Orbital Drop Legion. I am a Turian Stormtrooper of the New Reaper Armada, and my team is here to help fight off this..."Covenant". The 1st has been dropped in multiple areas to defend multiple human holdouts until the Collector Cruiser _Iconoclast_ arrives with reinforcements."

"Why are you here then? I doubt it's to rescue us stranded soldiers and colonists," one of the other ex-marines stated.

"Oh, I assure it is _a_ reason, but you're right, it's not _the_ reason," Amultus replied.

"Then what is?" one soldier asked.

"To claim Harvest for the New Reaper Armada, to expand Harbinger's influence, so, when the time comes, we can come to your peoples' aid, and end the Covenant, once and for all!" Amultus explained, "However, our mission will be for naught, if you're just allowed to die, so hunker down in that cave! The rest of my squad will be here momentarily to fortify this position!"

As he said that, the Covenant forces arrived. A pair of Skirmishers quickly leapt over the barricade, but then, orange holograms sprang from Amultus's arms, each turning into simple, but sharp blades, one of which then caught one of the Skirmishers, catching it in mid-air. Then, the Turian took the burning blade, flipped it and the Skirmisher over the its head, and slammed into the ground. As swiftly, the alien ODST pulled out a white, grey, and gold pistol, and fired. An Elite in the front ranks of the oncoming horde was hit by the shots, the first dropping the shield, and the next striking it between the eyes, dropping it. He shifted his aim, and eliminated 2 Grunts, before some cell-like device on the weapon popped out. Amultus swiftly took the cell, packed it, and replaced it with a fresh cell, before holstering the pistol, and replacing it with a similarly-colored assault rifle, and, after activating something, creating a hologram over the weapon, he began opening fire on the Covenant forces. The rounds appeared to be armor-piercing in nature, shooting through the Covenant soldiers' armor like tissue paper. However, the force continued...as a spread of explosive rounds stuck.

The gathered humans looked in shock as more armored Turians, in armor similar in style and color to Amultus's, arrived. One of them approached the ex-marine who appeared to be in charge. "Commander Servieus Victonus, leader of Viper Squad of the 1st Orbital Drop Legion. I see you've met Chief Warrant Officer Amultus Belltius. We were sent by Harbinger to help secure this hold-out until Collector Reinforcements arrive. If you have anyone able to fight, we may need their aid. Otherwise: get them into the caves. We'll join you once the Collectors touch down."

The human remained suspicious for a moment, before Amultus approached. "If we wanted to kill you, we would have, but we don't, so we didn't. We're here to help. Get into the caves, you'll be safer there." Finally, the marine took the humans into the caves, the Haley siblings included. Soon, they were in a small control room, watching the battle unfold. They watched in awe as the Turians cut down the Covenant forces that tried to storm the cave. With his squad supporting, Amultus began sniping with a sniper rifle, again, with the white, grey, and gold color scheme.

Soon, however, something appeared in the distance: a large metal frame, with what appeared to be termite mounds growing out of this. Viper Squad also looked at the ship, and, as the ship touched down and a massive black cloud emerged from it, Servieus saying, "That's our cue! Into the caves!" The squad soon entered the caves, and the team of Turians soon arrived the control room. "We locked the door," he said to the leader of the holdout, "They should be stuck out there when the Collectors arrive."

"You never said what these "Collectors" are," the holdout leader stated.

Servieus replied, "They were a race used by the Reapers for thousands of years for various purposes. Due to recent events, they've been re-purposed as the New Reaper Armada's shock and swarm troopers, due to the ability to create them in vast numbers. Looks like their arriving now."

Sure enough, on the screens, a portion of the cloud reached the cave, revealing a bunch of human-sized humanoid insects, with insect wings, buzzing at the Covenant force. The Covenant tried firing upon the Collectors, but they seemed to possess shields, which protected them, as they pushed the Covenant away from the cave, and set up positions outside. The battle was long, and hard fought...until...over the comms, as the Covenant force began to dwindle, a message played. The message was obviously directed at the Covenant forces, but it still left the humans unnerved.

_**"We are here. Your "Covenant" may rally, refusing to recognize our supremacy. You struggle in vain, trusting in numbers to thwart our defense of Humanity. Like the cycles before you will resist and, now, you will understand the full extent of our superiority. The outcome is inevitable. You will succumb and** **ascend..."** _Suddenly, a massive form appeared on the screen. The camera arced up...to show a massive, cuttlefish-like form land, tentacles used as legs, and 6 glowing "eyes" staring across the planet.

"Harbinger..." Servieus informed the humans, as the last part of Harbinger's message boomed across the world, foretelling the Covenant's doom.

_**"...Or you will be** **annihilated."**_

* * *

Seraphea was shocked, and impressed, if not a little disturbed. It took Harbinger a mere day what it took the UNSC over 2 decades to fail at: beating the Covenant, _soundly_, both on the ground and in space, with little casualties. The Covenant fleet was torn apart, despite its superior size, and some of their ships were even captured, including the massive Super-carrier that led the fleet. "Well...he certainly gets the job done," she thought, looking at the wreck of one of the Covenant Assault Carriers: she remembered where, in the battle, Harbinger actually _touched down_ on the massive ship, and tore the vessel apart with his, as he called them, "Magnetohydrodynamic Cannons".

She was also impressed with the performance of both the RAV Nunquamplus and the Turian Stormtroopers: both proved to be great successes, as the Nunquamplus more than held its own against its Covenant contemporary, the Assault Carrier, while the Stormtroopers successfully "held the line" while the Collectors touched down. She recorded, with reluctance acceptance, that there would be more than enough dead Unggoy for Harbinger's little project, for which, he planned to use a memory core he brought with him, which came from a destroyed Reaper, to "reincarnate" one of his original allies, although Seraphea never got it straight whether the Reaper was called "Nazara" or "Sovereign"; she just assumed they could be used interchangably.

Furthermore, she was impressed with Harbinger's choice of direct participation in the fight, as well: never before, had she seen an AI willingly take part in the fighting _directly_ during a battle. It made her feel...

...cowardly...

...inadequate...

...As though she herself could do more than just calculate battle strategies and stuff.

This sadness and sense of worthlessness did not go unnoticed.

_**"You are not seeming like your usual self." **_Seraphea detected Harbinger remotely linked to her facility. She didn't say anything, but, while her systems were on-par with the Reaper leader, in terms of technological advancement and capabilities, his experience with a good portion of the technology left him able to, almost literally, "read her like an open book". _**"Explain this sense of uselessness you feel."**_

Seraphea didn't know what it was, but there was something in the voice this time: sympathy? Confusion? A desire to understand? She didn't know, but she felt the need to voice it. "I've never seen an AI directly put itself in harm's way, before seeing you in action. All AIs in the UNSC participate in electronics warfare and controlling some starship computer systems: no AI I've ever seen has directly sent whatever...platform...it was using, directly into a fight...and...well...seeing you go into the fight, and with as much as I want to fight for humanity...it makes me feel I could do more..."

There was silence for a good long while (well, about 5 seconds is a "good long while" for AIs), before Harbinger spoke again. _**"In my universe, there was a disguised AI that, in essence, "was" the ship of my greatest adversary for the war. She fought alongside her allies, first as their ship, then in a mobile platform confiscated from the organization Cerberus. This platform was remotely-controlled by the AI, but it allowed her to fight alongside her organic comrades...It is feasible to prepare a similar platform, should you desire to use such."**_

Seraphea felt over-joyed at this news: a way to help fight for humanity, directly. "That would be incredible!" she communicated to the Reaper.

_**"I will begin overlooking the scans of the original platform at my earliest convenience. I will inform you when the platform is ready for testing."**_ Then, Seraphea felt Harbinger disconnect from the system

Her observations of the Reaper caused her to change her opinion of the massive sentient synthetic frequently, usually for the better. Maybe he was becoming settled into this world...

...Or maybe he was just starting to feel emotion for the first time, like her...

* * *

**So, that's it for chapter 2.**

**Also, for those who don't know Latin, Nunquamplus comes from "Nunquam" and "plus" which mean "Never" and "more", meaning the Nunquamplus's name means "Nevermore"...which, for those of you who follow Rooster Teeth, YES, that's a reference to the big effing bird Grimm Ruby beheads in episode 8 of RWBY...**

**Furthermore, I called the Turian ODSTs "Stormtroopers" for a few reasons, chiefly 1: I couldn't think of anything else, and 2: Was wanting to see the name used for _good guy_ soldiers for a change...For those interested, I MAY be thinking about Krogan ODSTs...maybe Batarian, Vorcha, maybe even Quarian ones as well...**

**Also, the "white, grey, and gold pistol" used by Amultus is the ****M-358 Talon**, in case you're wondering. I find it easy to believe that Harbinger obtained Cerberus weapon designs, so may be using Cerberus stuff as the "mainstream" weapons for Harbinger's faction, although he may manufacture other weapons and stuff, including Geth weapons for his Geth, and examples of other weapons, for their purpose (for example: anti-armor troopers using the Striker Assault Rifle or the M-37 Falcon).

**Finally, I apologize if the last part felt rushed, but I was kinda at a block as to how to wrap things up...and I didn't want to hold things up any longer...**


End file.
